The present invention relates to casino card games. Specifically, the present invention is a card game in which a player is rewarded if, upon comparing his hand to a dealer""s hand, the player""s hand is the higher ranking hand.
Casino games include many subsets of games. One well known subset of games includes games in which cards dealt to a player are combined into a single player""s hand that is compared to a dealer hand. For example, in Blackjack, each player places a wager. A dealer deals two cards to each player and to himself. The dealer""s cards are dealt with one card face up and the other face down. All players receiving a natural twenty-one or Blackjack, i.e. a total of twenty-one in the initial dealt hand, are immediately rewarded and their cards collected. Typically, Blackjacks are rewarded at greater than even money, such as 2:1 or 3:2.
Each remaining player may opt to hit, i.e. receive one or more additional cards, or stand, i.e. stand on the player""s current hand, with the object being to obtain a hand total closer to twenty-one than the dealer""s hand total. If the player hits and receives a card that causes his hand total to exceed twenty-one, the player busts and the player""s wager is immediately collected and play is terminated as to that player.
A player may also have additional options available depending on the initial hand dealt. If the player receives a pair, i.e. two cards having the same face value, the player may double his wager and split the pair, using each card of the pair as a base for a separate hand. For example, if a player were to be dealt a pair of eights, the player may split the pair by doubling his wager and playing with two hands each having an eight and an additional dealt card.
A player may also have the option to double down. Although the availability of the double down option varies from casino to casino, doubling down allows a player to double the player""s wager in exchange for a single additional card. Frequently, the double down option is only available to players having an initial hand total of ten or eleven.
After all the players have formed a final hand or busted, the dealer reveals the dealer""s hand and forms a final dealer hand by hitting or standing as the house rules dictate. House rules typically require the dealer to hit on any hand total less than sixteen. The dealer resolves wagers by rewarding, typically at even money, all players with a final hand total closer to twenty-one than the dealer""s final hand total.
Conversely, wagers are collected from players with a final hand total further from twenty-one than the dealer""s final hand total. If the dealer busts, i.e. has a final hand total exceeding twenty-one, all players who did not bust or receive a Blackjack are rewarded, again, typically at even money. If the player and dealer push, i.e. have the same final hand total, the player""s wager is returned.
Blackjack has its drawbacks, however. One known drawback is that in a fast paced casino game, the player must sum the cards of his or her hand quickly to avoid interfering with the flow of play. Additionally, the main impediment to quick play is the decision-making time required by each player in assessing his or her hand and determining how to play the hand.
Another subset of casino games include Pai Gow and games based on Pai Gow. These games are characterized by a step in which dealt cards or tiles are divided into two or more sub-hands.
For example, in Pai Gow Poker, seven cards are dealt to the banker and the players. The banker and players arrange the cards into a five-card high hand and a two-card low hand. Each player compares his or her high hand to the banker""s high hand and his or her low hand to the banker""s low hand. The player wins if both hands outrank the corresponding banker""s hands according to conventional poker rankings. If one of the player""s hands outranks one of the banker""s hands, and the other banker""s hand ties or outranks the other player hand, the player and banker xe2x80x9cpushxe2x80x9d and the player neither wins nor loses his wager. If both the banker""s hands outrank or tie the player""s hands, the player loses his or her wager.
However, again, the decision-making time is the main impediment to fast play. Additionally, the game can be difficult to master and difficult to win for novices.
Thus, it can be seen that there is a need in the art for a casino card game that is simpler than prior art casino card games yet provides the player with a reasonable chance of winning.
A method for playing a card game for at least one player playing against a dealer uses conventional playing cards. In an optional gaming embodiment of the game, the game begins with the player placing a wager. A two card hand is dealt to the each of the dealer and player.
The wagers are resolved by first determining if either the player hand or dealer hand contains a predetermined two-card combination. In an optional embodiment, the two-card combination is a pair. If only one hand includes a two-card combination, the hand including the two-card combination is the winning hand.
If, however, both hands include a predetermined two-card combination, the player hand and dealer hands are compared. The hand with the higher ranking two-card combination is the winning hand. In an optional-embodiment, pairs are ranked according to face value. In a further optional embodiment, a pair of deuces may be elevated to outrank only the pair of aces. In yet a further embodiment, only the player is allowed to use a pair of deuces to outrank a pair of aces. That is, a pair of deuces in the player hand outranks a pair of aces in the dealer hand but a pair of deuces in the dealer hand does not outrank a pair of aces in the player hand.
If neither the player hand nor dealer hand includes a predetermined two-card combination, the wagers are resolved by comparing the higher card of the player hand to the higher card of the dealer hand and the lower card of the player hand to the lower card of the dealer hand. If the higher card of the player hand outranks the higher card of the dealer hand and the lower card of the player hand outranks the lower card of the dealer hand, the player hand is the winning hand. Similarly, if one of the player cards outranks the corresponding dealer card and the remaining dealer card outranks the remaining player card, a push is declared.
Conversely, if the higher card of the dealer hand outranks the higher card of the player hand and the lower card of the dealer hand outranks the lower card of the player hand, the dealer hand is the winning hand. In an optional embodiment, the dealer wins on all ties; that is, if the higher card of the dealer hand outranks or ties the higher card of the player hand and the lower card of the dealer hand outranks or ties the lower card of the player hand, the dealer hand is the winning hand.
In an embodiment in which the player has made a wager, a reward is issued to the player if the player hand is the winning hand. If a push is declared, the player""s wager is returned. Finally, if the dealer hand is the winning hand, the player""s wager is collected.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a game in which play can be easily mastered while still providing the player a reasonable opportunity to win.